Hawx game review

Game review: Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X.

By: Joseph Benjamin Jireh Pabellon

                Being a fan of aviation, I have this fascination of dogfights (planes battling in skies) since I was a kid. This influence came when I first watched Top Gun on the big screen when I was at least 5 or 6 years old. So when the computer games age came along, what I play mostly are games that have planes in it and shooting down enemy planes. I remembered playing one in 8bit graphics which is boring in this age and time compared to the more realistically looking games of our time.

                One game in particular that caught my attention and seems to have hooked on me for a pretty long time since it was released was Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. which includes a story arc within the game, so it is not just plain, take off, look for enemies and shoot them down, which I find more interesting. Too bad for me when I acquired the game because of hardware limitations, a sequel have already been released, so I can’t wait to get a hold of it, and soon. This game features aircrafts that exists in real world with some exceptions and also features some real life dynamics and physics, unfortunately it also includes fake physics within the game as most of us would expect from computer games.

                In this section, I will discuss the positive side of the game, to start with the story line. The game starts off as you play the role of an X US pilot recruited by a private security firm that provides services to different countries that contracts them. Giving the thrill of flying the most sophisticated aircraft available in your arsenal that could match your mission, and in some part of the story, twists are also included (spoiler warning) that includes being ordered to betray your own country facing a dilemma of serving your country or doing what you are paid for. The game physics are also close to real life only without the G effects on your body when you play it and real life in-game damage control especially when playing in elite mode. The graphics are also a plus for me because not only the plane looks real but the environment also shares the same thing. Trees and mountains got shadows, clouds, smoke system, vapor trails, heat effects and aircraft surface movements. The cockpit also looks close to a real life jet and the ocean looks as real as it gets especially when all effects are in the highest mode.

                The negative side of this game though includes fake physics. This includes a non stall when system assistance is on, and no g-effects when you pull a high G maneuver. Some games include this feature which blacks out your screen when you pull a high G maneuver. Also the developer included a fake aircraft in your arsenal that doesn’t exist in real life. But it’s just one aircraft so it won’t spoil the fun. Other things include hardware compatibility issues, some features of the game aren’t accessible if you are not using the recommended graphics card such as the enhanced heat effects.

                To conclude this review, my overall rating for this game is 4 out of five in story, realism and graphics.

The phony bugger compensates the activating follower.

The phony bugger compensates the activating follower.